1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electric lid closures which close and open a lid by force of an electric power, and more particularly to electric lid closures of a type which is applied to a trunk lid of a motor vehicle to draw down the lid to its full close position by force of the electric power once the lid comes to a predetermined almost close position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hitherto, various lid closures of the above-mentioned type have been proposed and put into practical use particularly in the field of motor vehicles. Some are of a type which comprises a lock unit mounted on a trunk lid and an electric closing unit mounted on a mouth portion of a trunk room of the vehicle. The lock unit includes a latch plate and a locking plate. The electric closing unit comprises an electric motor and a movable base plate formed with a striker. When the trunk lid is pivoted down to an almost close position where the latch plate engages with the striker, the electric closing unit starts to operate and causes the movable base plate to move downward thereby to draw down the trunk lid, via the latched striker, to a full close position by force of the electric motor. Upon sensing the full close position reached by the trunk lid, the electric closing unit stops its operation. In this full close position of the trunk lid, the movable base plate assumes its lower work position and a water-tight sealing between the periphery of the trunk lid and that of the trunk room mouth by means of a weather strip disposed therebetween.
When, under this full close position of the trunk lid, a trunk open lever arranged in the vehicle cabin is manipulated by a driver or passenger, the locking plate disengages the latch plate causing the same to release the trunk lid. Upon sensing the disengagement of the latch plate from the locking plate, the electric closing unit starts to run in a reversed direction and moves up the movable base plate to its upper stand-by position. When the movable base plate reaches this upper stand-by position, operation of the electric closing unit stops.
In the electric lid closures of the above-mentioned type, an arrangement is conventionally employed wherein a first direction along which the latch plate moves toward the striker for engagement therewith is in parallel with a second direction along which the movable base plate travels from the upper stand-by position to the lower work position.
However, this parallel moving arrangement tends to cause a slanted posture of the electric closing unit on the trunk room mouth when the above-mentioned first direction is angled relative to the electric closing unit. In fact, this angled relation is needed by the weather strip for achieving an assured water-tight sealing between the trunk lid and the trunk room mouth.
However, the slanted posture of the electric closing unit inevitably causes a lower portion thereof to be largely projected into the trunk room, which reduces an effective capacity of the trunk room.